AUDUBON 



all others, as his journals show repeatedly. The impress 

 of the years in France was never lost ; he always had a 

 strong French accent, he possessed in a marked degree 

 the adaptability to circumstances which is a trait of that 

 nation, and his disposition inherited from both parents 

 was elated or depressed by a trifle. He was quick-tem- 

 pered, enthusiastic, and romantic, yet affectionate, forgiv- 

 ing, and with unlimited industry and perseverance ; he was 

 generous to every one with time, money, and possessions ; 

 nothing was too good for others, but his own personal 

 requirements were of the simplest character. His life 

 shows all this and more, better than words of mine can 

 tell; and as the only account of his years till he left 

 Henderson, Ky., in 1819, is in his own journal, it is given 

 here in fuU.^ 



Myself.2 



The precise period of my birth is yet an enigma to me, and I 

 can only say what I have often heard my father repeat to me on 

 this subject, which is as follows : It seems that my father had 

 large properties in Santo Domingo, and was in the habit of visit- 

 ing frequently that portion of our Southern States called, and 

 known by the name of, Louisiana, then owned by the French 

 Government. 



During one of these excursions he married a lady of Spanish 

 extraction, whom I have been led to understand was as beautiful 

 as she was wealthy, and otherwise attractive, and who bore my 

 father three sons and a daughter, — I being the youngest of the 

 sons and the only one who survived extreme youth. My mother, 

 soon after my birth, accompanied my father to the estate of Aux 

 Cayes, on the island of Santo Domingo, and she was one of the 

 victims during the ever-to-be-lamented period of the negro 

 insurrection of that island. 



1 This manuscript was found in an old book which had been in a barn on 

 Staten Island for years. 



2 Reprinted from Scribner's Magazine, March, 1893, p. 267. A few errors 

 in names and dates are now corrected. 



